Polaroid SP 350 User manual

Brand: Polaroid

Model: SP 350

Type: User manual

Polaroid SP 350 is a video-based imaging system that allows you to quickly and easily take instant photographs for a variety of photo-identification needs. This camera is designed to be versatile and easy to use, featuring both strobe and flood lighting modes to match your studio lighting setup. The SP 350 also offers a range of print formats, including 1up, 2up, 4up, 5up, 6up, and 9up arrangements. With its intuitive controls and ability to produce high-quality instant prints, the Polaroid SP 350 is an excellent choice for professional photographers and businesses alike.

User Guide

SP 350

1. Introduction..................................................................................
2. Unpacking....................................................................................
3. System Diagrams........................................................................
4. Connecting Up.............................................................................
5. Loading Film................................................................................
6. Lighting Techniques.....................................................................
7. Printer Settings............................................................................
8. Capturing The Customers Image................................................
9. Printing The Captured Image......................................................
10. Improving The Focus Setting......................................................
11. Approximate Depth Of Field.......................................................
12. Display Screen Adjustment.........................................................
13. Colour Adjustment......................................................................
14. Film.............................................................................................
15. Troubleshooting...........................................................................
16. Specifications..............................................................................
17. EMC Statement (Europe)..........................................................
18. SP350 Warranty / Service..........................................................
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page 2 of 28

The Studio Polaroid 350 is a video based imaging system which allows

you to quickly and easily take instant photographs to meet a variety of

photo-identification needs. This guide describes all the features of the

Polaroid SP350. It takes you from unpacking the boxes to setting up the

system through any trouble-shooting problems you may have. All

bracketed numbers refer to the diagrams of the camera and printer

shown in section 3.

System will arrive in two boxes as follows

a. Printer, film holder,

power supply, mains

cable and Polaroid

film.

b. Camera, strobe,

batteries, camera

cable, user guides,

calibration overlay,

grey card and colour

adjuster.

Carefully unpack the

contents of both

boxes.

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page 3 of 28

travel bracket

Important: Remove the travel bracket from the printer as shown

above by unscrewing the locking screw and washer. After removing,

replace the screw and washer. Keep the travel bracket in a safe

place for future shipping of the printer.

1. Preview screen

2. Hot shoe

3. CS mount access cover

4. Lens

5. Live / freeze button

6. Print format button

7. Print button

8. Film button

9. Tripod mount point

10. Brightness dial

page 4 of 28

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11. Power switch

12. Film holder

13. Locking mechanism

14. PC switch

15. Print format switch

16. Film switch

17. Lighting switch

18. Pull tab / out of film indicators

19. Film peel time indicators

20. Live / freeze switch

21. Print switch

22. Dark slide

23. Power supply

24. Video out (CVBS)

25. S-Video out (Y/C)

26. PC parallel connector

27. Video in (CVBS)

28. Video /S- Video input switch

29. S-Video in (Y/C)

30. Colour compensation controls

31. Power inlet

32. Strobe X-sync connector

33. SP camera connector

16 17

page 5 of 28

page 6 of 28

Use the diagram below to connect up the SP 350 system

optional external

strobe

power supply

mains power

SP302 camera

optional monitor

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page 7 of 28

The camera can either be tripod mounted or hand held, as shown

below. Sit the printer on a nearby work surface.

Power up the system by switching the power switch (11) on the front

panel of the printer.

Important: Switching on the printer with the travel bracket in place

may damage the printing mechanism. Ensure the travel bracket has

been removed from the printer as described on page 3 before

powering up the system

Attaching The Film Holder

a. Place the film holder on the

opening on the top of the printer

so that it’s retaining flanges align

with the locking mechanism (13)

on the printer.

b. Lock the film holder in place

by sliding both retaining bars in

the direction shown.

Loading A Fresh Film Pack

c. Use only Studio Polaroid colour

and / or Polapan Pro 100 black &

white film.

d. Open the film holder by pulling

down the ends of the latch and lifting

the cover.

e. Insert a fresh film pack into the

film holder as shown above with the

black paper tab facing you.

f. Check below the black tab to make

sure you see a number of white tabs

(one white tab is used for each film

exposure.)

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latch

page 8 of 28

Important: The SP350 system is not designed for use with the

Thermoback or Thermobox product.

g. Close the film holder making sure the black paper tab is outside the

film holder.

h. Pull the black

paper tab out of

the film holder,

keeping the tab

horizontal at all

times.

page 9 of 28

Important:

Be sure to remove the dark slide (22) before trying to take pictures.

Lighting Set-Up

To obtain the best possible results from the SP350 system, it is

essential to set up studio lighting correctly. Using the lighting switch

(17) select the setting applicable to your studio set up. In set up, the

recommended minimum distance from subject to lens is 1.3m.

Strobe Lighting

When using strobe lighting, the ideal set up is with two lights positioned

as shown below. If you are using only one strobe light, it should be

positioned as close to the lens as possible (preferably directly above).

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ensure strobe

lighting mode is

selected on the

printer front panel

Important: It is particularly important when using strobe lighting, to

ensure balanced lighting of the subject and the backdrop.If backdrop

lighting is used, it should be set to low power to avoid over-exposing.

Saturating the backdrop may cause an imbalance in the video

image. For optimum results with either flood or strobe lighting, a grey

backdrop is recommended.

If using the on board strobe

unit provided, insert the

batteries provided by

pressing the locking

knob and opening the

compartment cover as

shown opposite.

Place the batteries as illustrated in the

compartment and replace the compartment

cover.

Tilt up the preview screen (1)

before sliding the on board

strobe unit on to the hot shoe

(2) as shown opposite.

Switch off the on

board strobe unit

when the camera is

not in use and remove

the batteries if you are not likely

to use for an extended period of time.

See on board strobe unit instructions for

further information.

Flood Lighting

When using flood lighting, the ideal set up is also with two lights

positioned as shown on the previous page. Ensure

flood lighting mode is selected on the printer front

panel as shown. If backdrop lighting is used,

ensure balanced lighting of the backdrop and the

subject.

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Exposure

Freeze an image by toggling the live / freeze button (5). If exposure

correction is needed see below

After correcting the exposure it is advisable to take a test picture as

there are differences between the preview screen image and the photo

image.

The printer allows you to make a number of choices. Set these before

capturing an image. The choices are as follows;

Strobe or flood light (17) - this allows you to match the SP350 system

to your studio lighting set up. This must be set before capturing an

image.

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If image is too dark

Use a larger lens aperture

Move lights closer to subject

Increase light output

If image is too light

Use a smaller lens aperture

Move lights away from subject

Decrease light output

page 12 of 28

strobe lighting mode for use

with on-board strobe unit or

external strobe lighting

flood lighting mode for use

with flood lighting

1up, 2up, 4up, 5up, 6up or 9up print format (15) - this allows you to

specify whether your print will be a 1up, 2up, 4up, 5up, 6up or 9up

arrangement. The print format button (6) on the camera

performs the same function.

Film switch (17) - this switch has the same function as the film button

(8) on the camera and allows you to choose whether your image is

printed out on to colour or black & white film.

PC switch (14) - there is no support for this switch at present but in the

future it will allow you to link the printer to your PC and send images in

either direction i.e. download images from your PC to print or send

images to your PC from the camera for storage and /or manipulation.

page 13 of 28

1up

2up

4up

5up

6up

9up

a. Check your customer’s image is correctly framed on the preview

screen (1). If using the on board strobe unit provided, ensure the ready

indicator shows red before capturing an image. This is easiest to view

with the preview screen in the lowered

position.

b. Press the blue live / freeze button (5) as

illustrated to capture the image.

c. If you or your customer are dissatisfied

with the image on screen, press the live /

freeze button (5) again and you will be returned to "live" mode.

d. Pressing the live / freeze button once more will capture another

image on the preview screen.

a. You must have a captured image on the preview screen in order to

print.

b. Be sure the dark slide (22) is removed

from the film holder before sending an

image to print.

c. With an image captured on screen, check the printer is in the desired

film mode and that the corresponding film is loaded.

d. Select a print arrangement using the print format switch (15) on the

printer or (6) on the camera.

e. To print, simply press either the print button (7) on the camera or the

print switch (21) on the printer. Printing takes 30-60 seconds during

which time the print indicator above the print switch (21) shows green.

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dark slide

f. The printer beeps and the pull tab indicator (18)

flashes green indicating that the print cycle is

complete. Pull the white film tab keeping

it horizontal to ensure

that the film in the film

holder remains aligned.

g. Pull the tab marked with arrows straight out in one uninterrupted

motion as shown above. Lay the film down flat either on the printer or

the surrounding work surface.

h. The printer now starts counting the

development time of the film. As this

is the only picture currently

developing, it is film peel time

indicator 1 (19) that flashes for the

duration of the development period.

i. When the camera beeps and the film peel

time indicator (19) displays solid colour for 1

second, peel the back from the print as shown.

page 15 of 28

Important: The film uses a caustic paste. Avoid contact with skin,

eyes and mouth and keep away from children and animals.

If you get some paste on your skin, wipe it off immediately and

wash with water to avoid an alkali burn.

If eye or mouth contact occurs, quickly wash the area with plenty of

water and see a doctor. Keep discarded materials away from chil-

dren, animals, clothing and furniture.

The lens range markings can be used to focus the image if the subject

distance is known. For a more accurate setting:

a. Adjust lens aperture to the maximum setting (f/1).

b. Adjust lighting to stop image saturation (e.g.switch off studio lights).

c. Move camera to correctly frame the subject on the preview screen.

d. Adjust the zoom lens to it’s most telephoto (highest magnification).

e. Focus lens on the subject.

f. Re-zoom to correctly frame the subject on the preview screen.

g. Return aperture setting and lighting to original configuration.

See below for the range within which the subject will remain in focus for

different aperture settings. This has been calculated for a nominal

camera to subject distance of 2m and a zoom setting which gives a

typical portrait shot. Different subject distances and zoom settings will

affect depth of field and so these values are intended as a guide only.

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Important: It is recommended that the camera is operated in the

range of f/4 to f/8 to optimise the depth of field and maintain image

sharpness. Adjust studio lighting to achieve an f-number within this

range

F number

Min. Subject distance

1.95

1.80

1.65

1.40

Max. subject distance

2.05

2.25

2.60

3.85

It is recommended that the brightness of the camera preview screen (1)

matches the brightness of the printed photograph. Use dial (10) to

adjust the brightness of the preview screen if necessary.

If you are not satisfied with the colour balance seen in your prints, you

need to check that the camera is calibrated to suit your particular studio

set up. The camera colour balance has been factory preset to 3200K

for tungsten flood light and 5500K for strobe light. However lighting

used and personal preference will vary from one user to another

meaning fine adjustment may be necessary.

Camera Colour Calibration is split into two stages and must be carried

out in the following order:

1. Aperture Adjustment sets

the correct light level in the

video signal (prior to performing

the colour check) by adjusting

the lens aperture.

2. Colour Check allows

adjustment of the camera white

balance through fine adjustment of

the camera white balance controls.

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page 17 of 28

lens aperture

white balance

controls

To set up for calibration, make the following checks:

a. Ensure your lighting is set up as for normal operation (see section 5

for further details)

b. Calibration is best carried out with the camera mounted on a tripod

as shown below.

c. You will need the calibration overlay, grey card and colour adjuster

which are all packaged with the camera.

d. Position the grey card in the intended focal plane. This is easiest

achieved by seating the grey card as shown above. Note that the

recommended minimum distance from subject to lens is 1.3m.

e. Switch off the printer.

page 18 of 28

grey card

minimum 1.3m

f. Peel back the securing tabs on

the calibration overlay and

position over the front panel of

the printer.

g. Ensure the the overlay is aligned

with the printer switches and press

the tabs to hold in place.

h. Reset the colour compensation

controls (30) on the rear panel of

the printer if they have been

adjusted at all. Align the slot on

each control with the horizontal

mark on the label as illustrated.

You are now ready to start camera colour calibration. To exit this

calibration mode, at any stage, simply switch off the printer.

Camera Colour Calibration Mode

a. To enter the calibration mode, hold

button 1

and

button 2

on the calibration overlay

down during power-up as shown.

The printer will sound a double

beep indicating that the

system is in Camera

Calibration Mode.

Also note that all

print option

indicators are

off.

page 19 of 28

colour compensation controls

b. Press

button 3

on the calibration

overlay to select the lighting mode which

corresponds to your lighting set up.

Aperture Adjustment

c. Press

button 4

on the calibration overlay until

indicator A is lit as shown.

d. Zoom the camera in on the grey card by

turning the middle lens ring fully anti -

clockwise as shown. Ensure the grey card

fills the preview screen completely and

press

button 2

on the calibration overlay.

and

indicate which direction to turn the lens aperture to

achieve the correct setting.

indicates that there is insufficient light and

indicates too much light. Make a small adjustment of the lens

aperture (ring closest to camera body) in the direction shown according

to which indicator is lit.

f. Press

button 2

on the calibration overlay twice and look again at

indicators

and

g. Repeat steps e and f until

lights

indicating that the light level is acceptable.

h. Fix the aperture at this point by tightening the locking screw. Check

that the aperture ring has not moved in tightening locking screw by

repeating steps f and g.

page 20 of 28

strobe

ambient

Important: Do not adjust the lens aperture and / or move the

position of the tripod during the following Colour Check procedure.

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Polaroid SP 350 User manual

Polaroid SP 350 User manual

Polaroid SP 350 User manual

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